all set to power the indian market - siemens energy … · 10/12/2007 · khandsari sugar india is...

The Gujarat Prime Mover company was set up in 1986 at Baroda, India, specifically to manufacture single-stage, 1-megawatt turbinesimplementing the KK&K (Kuehnle Kopp & Kausch) technology. Today,when the robustly growing industrial sector in India is plagued with a deficit in power supply, the Vadodara Steam Turbine Factory, alongwith the newly acquired KK&K turbine business, spearheads theSiemens turbine manufacturing activities in India.

All set to power the Indian market

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14 Venture November 2007

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In 2006, Siemens celebrated 50 years of local manufacturing in India.To mark this historic occasion, Siemens Ltd., as part of its investmentledgrowth strategy, announced the establishment of a greenfield steam-turbine factory at Maneja, Vadodara, in the Gujarat province. This newfactory, with an investment of about 50 million euros, also included enhancing the existing manufacturing capabilities at Vadodara.

The factory commenced operations in January 2007, and today has aworkforce of around 200 employees working on a number of industrialsteam turbine models of up to 50 megawatt (MW) capacity. Spread overan area of 60,000 m2, the new facility has two manufacturing halls thathouse a turbine assembly bay and a condenser bay, respectively. Thefactory is presently producing around 70 turbines per year, predominant-ly for the sugar, metal-processing and pulp-and-paper industries. Thenew facility also provides after-sales and repair services.

And there is room for expansion too. If the market grows as expected,by 2010 Siemens will double the output with commensurate increase inheadcount.

Serving Indian industryIndia is a booming market and Siemens is all geared up to be a part ofthe great Indian growth story. The recently constituted Siemens Turbo-machinery Equipment business, formed by the integration of KK&K into the Siemens group, is also a part of the group’s ambitious growthstrategy. Having absorbed the low-range market share — previouslythe province of KK&K — the turbomachinery business has gained even more prominence as it now covers the entire range of industrialsteam turbines. In addition, the new factory at Vadodara, with enhanced manufacturing capacity and service workshop facilities, is also wellpoised to serve existing and new customers in the local and inter-national markets.

Bags of bagasse to sweeten the bottom line of the businessAmong the typical customers of Siemens’ steam-turbine business in India, sugar mills such as Shree Krishna Khandsari represent a majorshare. The factory is located in Taloda in the Nandurbar district of Maharashtra and was supplied a SST-050 by Siemens in September 2005.Beginning with a production capacity of 200 tons per day (tpd) in1973, the Shree Krishna Khandsari sugar mill has since then grown to the present capacity of 1100 tpd. Thriving on quality and sup-ported by a committed workforce of 300 employees, it has successfullyendured the competition posed by other sugar mills located in thevicinity.

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The factory produces Khandsari sugar with molasses as a by-productfor use in other applications. The sugar cane is procured from suppli-ers nearby in Maharashtra, and as the demand for the sugar product is high, the factory has excellent future prospects. Currently cateringonly to the domestic market, the factory is already planning for a distillery in the near future.

The SST-050 turbine supplied from Vadodara was originally from thestable of KK&K and sold by Siemens under license. Having an output of up to 2 MW, this model of turbine was considerably smaller than the established range of Siemens’ industrial turbines. But its importance for the Indian market, and the type of industry which the Shree KrishnaMills represents, was and is undeniable. Siemens was glad to add this turbine to its range. Now, of course, Siemens has access to a com-plete spectrum of STE turbines that range from 45 kilowatts to 10megawatts, and thus has a broader variety to adapt to its customers’needs.

The turbine supplied to Shree Krishna Khandsari is used for captive consumption while the steam generated is used for the sugar process.The turbine is normally used for a period of five months, mainly between November and March, when the sugar crop is available. Apartfrom the cane crusher and sugar manufacturing unit, the steam turbo-generator set is the main equipment at the mill.

The steam, having an exhaust back pressure of 1.5 kg/cm2[g], is used forthe sugar manufacturing process. The remaining power from the turbo-generator set is used for the house load of the plant.

Increased reliability, improved economyThe new turbine was part of a refurbishment to help the customer copewith the increasing power requirements of the plant. The new turbo-generator set has improved the reliability of the complete sugar plant,and in turn has enabled the mill to be totally independent from the state grid (MSEB, Maharashtra State Electricity Board), which is plaguedby constant frequency fluctuations as well as power shortage.

In-house bagasse is used as fuel, which allows power to be generated at a very economical price compared to the charges paid to the electricityboard. The promoters of Shree Krishna Khandsari, Mr. Girish Agarwaland his brother Mr. Satish Agrawal, calculate that they are now saving1.8 million Indian rupees (MINR) per month due to the turbogeneratorset installed for captive power generation. The cost of power from theelectricity board was 2.6 MINR per month, whereas the cost for the sameamount of power generated by the turbogenerator is 0.8 MINR, thusmaking a clear saving of 1.8 MINR per month.

The Agarwal brothers have planned well for their company’s economy.Reliable and economical electricity supply is a sure basis for future devel-opment along the route that they have mapped out for their growth. Asmall company maybe, but with a big future!

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Steam-turbine (top) and condensor manufacturing (bottom) at Siemens’Vadodara plant, India.


Khandsari sugarIndia is the world’s major producer of cane sugar, and itssugar industry continues to grow. Annual centrifugal pro-duction has reached 16 million metric tonnes raw value(mtrv), which includes nearly l million tonnes of khandsarisugar. India is also the world’s major producer of non-cen-trifugal sugar, accounting for perhaps as much as two-thirdsof the total. Practically all of this sugar is consumed in India; only rarely, after exceptionally good harvests, aresmall quantities exported.

Khandsari has fewer calories than sugar. It is a naturalsweetener and is free of sulfur and chemicals. It is one of thesignificant agricultural products of small-scale industry in India. Originally confined to the State of Uttar-Pradesh,small-scale Khandsari sugar production is now country-wide.

Khandsari sugar is also known as "Cottage Sugar". It is ob-tained in unrefined crystalline form from small-scale sugarindustries known as Khandsari units. There are about 7,500such units in the country. Around 45 to 50 percent of the total sugar cane produced in the country is absorbed by theKhandsari industry, which provides employment to about2.5 million people.

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Top: Undergoing service at Shree Krishna Khandsari sugar mill: the SST-050, a rugged, dependable work horse for small-scale manufacturing and process industries.

Left: Cane carts ready to collect December’s harvest.


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Q: “No one’s too small for a big future.” Is this how the predesigned steam-turbine business perceives becoming part of Siemens?A: We have traditionally been a small player rather than a “global” one,but as part of Siemens we will indeed be part of a global network, withfull integration into Siemens.

Q: Why did Siemens take over KK&K, and what’s in it for you?A: KK&K was up for sale, and Siemens were interested in our businessand markets, which were complementary to theirs. As for us, we get a lot of additional requests and contracts via the Siemens global sales net-work. Plus, we get requests from parts of the world where we had no coverage in the past, for instance from the Americas and parts of Asia. Inparenthesis I should like to say that becoming a part of Siemens hasbeen welcomed by our workforce.

But there is another positive aspect: in the past, we were owned by finan-cial institutions with only limited interest in our core business. We greatly appreciate being a strategic part of a concern and benefitting fromsynergies in technology. We believe the current constellation to be a far-reaching guarantee for the persistence of our business activities.

Q: What is KK&K’s importance for Siemens? The first we heard of a relationshipwas in connection with a steam turbine marketed under licence in India.A: Yes, that’s correct. The SST-050, which is the Siemens designation, is

a turbine from the KK&K portfolio. A manufacturing licence for this tur-bine was issued to ABB in India at the end of the 1980’s. As a result ofcorporate development, the licence was taken over by Siemens some fiveyears ago, and the SST-050 became part of the Siemens steam turbineportfolio, marketed in India through Siemens’ Vadodara operations. TheSST-050 turbines are relatively simple, robust machines which are par-ticularly suited for such applications as sugar mills, including mechanicaldrive of shredders or power generation.

Q: What is the sales volume of these machines in India?A: About 20 to 25 turbines per year, the main share going to the sugarmills or comparable industries. Before becoming part of Siemens, KK&Ksteam turbines for the Indian market were marketed from Frankenthalor via local agents. But it will be a lot easier, of course, having a local affiliate and local manufacturing facilities. In future the Vadodara facili-ty will build the SST-050 together with a range of other machines in the Indian market. We expect to expand our market share considerablythrough this local presence. India is a booming market, and we want to be part of the boom!

Q: Were KK&K and Siemens competitors on the Indian market in the past?A: Not really. Siemens’ presence in the Indian market was on an entirelydifferent scale compared to ours. We marketed different machines fordifferent applications. Whereas we marketed steam turbines for smaller

You’re never too small for abig future.In November 2006, Siemens acquired the businessof Kuehnle, Kopp & Kausch (KK&K). Main productsare steam turbines as well as compressors and fansfor industrial applications. In June 2007 the companywas renamed Siemens Turbomachinery Equipment(STE). VENTURE met with Werner Stoebener, headof steam-turbine engineering.

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industrial applications, Siemens marketed larger turbines for power util-ities or larger process facilities.

Q: So the product lines dovetail neatly in a single portfolio? A: KK&K had a very good market position in its class of turbines andcompressors, just as Siemens was very successful in marketing the high-er power ratings. Our portfolios matched perfectly without overlapping,and could be merged without product redundancies and without marketdelays. It means that Siemens now has an integrated offering for a fullrange of steam turbines with any required power rating, including thelow-scale range where they did not previously operate.

Q: The compressors you mentioned are turbocompressors, is that right?A: Correct, KK&K has exclusively manufactured turbo-machines, includ-ing exhaust-gas turbochargers for the automotive industry until a coupleof years ago. Today, we manufacture steam turbines up to 10 MW, andventilators for power plant and water processing applications. Our turbo-compressors are mainly employed in process plants and water treatmentplants.

Q: How about the unique selling proposition of the former KK&K turbines?What sets them apart from competition?A: The vast majority of our sales are single-stage steam turbines with in-tegrated gearbox. A somewhat unique technology to mention is our twin

turbine, i.e. two turbines working with a single gearbox, the turbines being able to work at different speeds. This enabled us to build a dual-pressure turbine similar to a 2-stage turbine, which has been well accepted by the market. While these twin turbines offer all the possibilitiesof multi-stage turbines, they have the extra benefit of small single-stageturbines, including start-up without complicated procedures. But theyalso have the advantage of a better efficiency than conventional single-stage turbines. This is the development that has had the most positiveresonance in the market.

Q: Any additional projects and goals for the years to come?A: The continuous improvement of efficiencies is a major focus. In addi-tion, we want to further develop our machines to match market-specificstandards and specifications, including the oil and gas market, where wedo not yet have a significant presence. Moreover, we would like to expandour production-in-market.

Q: Put in a nutshell: what’s in for the customer?A: First and foremost: customer proximity. It is essential for our business,as is local content in a number of countries. As part of Siemens ourproducts will be available virtually everywhere in the world. AdditionallySiemens' worldwide service network ensures a service point is withinreach on a global scale.


all set to power the indian market - siemens energy … · 10/12/2007 · khandsari sugar india is...

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